The 5-Point or the 20-Point

You might think with two great points to choose between you can't go wrong picking either one. That's not true. Depending on the position either play could be a significant error or even a large blunder.

• Am I losing the game? Making the 20-point is likely to be right.
• How difficult is each point to make. Given a choice of two good moves do the hardest move first.
• Distribution. Distribution of your checkers always plays a role in selecting which point to make.
• Communication. If your back checkers are far away from the midpoint then the need for a connecting anchor increases.
• Has my opponent escaped a back checker? Your 20-point goes down in value your 5-point goes up in value.
• Do you have 3 checkers back? The 20-point goes up in value.